With Doodles still at Hockey Camp and Magoo actually interested in seeing some big things, I decide that we should head out again today. I figured if we waited for the sun to actually shine again, we might not get anymore trips in. The friend who joined us the other day, was hoping to join us again, but Magoo had been looking forward to us going alone.We hadn't had a special day with just the two of us doing something fun this summer. We got the dogs in the van and were ready to go. Unfortunately Navi was in the car parked at Hubby's work. I was that worried, because I'd been to Alberta Beach before.
Okay, so maybe I can't recall a shortcut to Alberta Beach from when I was 10 or 11 years old. How is that my fault? I mean the stupid smog was messing with my sense of direction and the smokey smell was starting to give me a headache. Plus, Magoo was talking and kept asking me to look at things...hello driving can't look. Besides, Hwys shouldn't cut-off and restart. After eventually giving into the reality that SecHwy 633 wasn't going to get me there, well that and the fact I no longer think I was even on it, I had to finally conceded that I was lost. Magoo and I decided that our dog Charlie would be our guide. Whatever way he looked was the way he turned. Not totally paying attention, we kept going R and then R...I'm still surprised that we didn't end up back where we started. After eventually turning left, I found myself in familiar territory; however I certainly didn't go very far given how long we'd been driving. I was on SecHwy 779 heading toward Spruce Grove. I took this opportunity to stop for gas and empty my poor bladder. It was then time to hit Hwy 16, which should have been my original route, but my pride was so sure I knew the short cut.
Depending on your definition of roadside attraction, along Hwy 16 there is a horse on a post and a teepee frame. The Cougar Creek Golf Course also has a magnificent entrance, complete with a water feature.
The dew in the air didn't make for the nicest day to be at a beach, but we still had fun. I was shocked at how much it had grown over the years. I kept trying to find the old cabin, but most of the older areas seemed to look the same. I think I did find the old store we'd walk to for ice cream. I had a lot of fun their walking the pier, swimming and boating. I wish we had a lake lot to take the boys to. Although if we had one perhaps we wouldn't see as many other towns. I couldn't find the large heart, but I did get a photo of a totem pole. Unfortunately, I couldn't convince Magoo to get out and take some time to walk around; although perhaps it wasn't the best day for that - hard to get a sense of the beauty and tranquility it has to offer with so much smog.
The town itself has some a cute antique shop in what looks like old church and Heritage Village Park - it didn't look like much, but to be honest at that point I think I just wanted to continue on, the smoke was starting to bother my eyes and giving me an even bigger headache. Plus, my short trip was quickly turning into a longer one, and we still had one more stop to make before going home. Alberta Beach is another town linked to the CN history of Alberta and even in the early 1900s was a popular summer escape. Every year it hosts the Lac Saint Anne pilgrimage.
After my trials and tribulations of RRs and trying to find Alberta Beach, I decided that it was best to go back onto Hwy 16 to find Wabamun. However, this didn't seem to work for me either. Apparently, you don't want to take the Provincial Park turn off - this does not connected to the town of Wabamun. It took me down more strange roads, past some golf course and through some native territory. Don't get me wrong the landscape was beautiful, but I was not only to far S, but also to far W. We eventually emerged at Seba Beach and back onto Hwy 16 (about 18 Km to far W). Basically, we drove in a big square (how did people survive without navigation systems? Getting so mixed up with directions is actually odd for me, normally I am good with directions - I felt somewhat foolish and somewhat helpless. Good thing Magoo was in good spirits and their for company.)
Finding the Large Dragon Fly was easy to do, once we actually got the correct turn off toward the town of Wabamun. The World's Largest Dragon fly is made of all recycled material. It is really neat to see the features. I tried to get the dogs to pose for a photo, but that didn't really work at all - one would sit, the other would stand, or they'd simply start to walk away. At one point my smallest dog, Buzz, was even thinking about crawling into the small water drainage pipe. Thankfully, we were able to stop him.
Magoo was tiered, so I wasn't able to convince him that we should drive into town for some ice cream. He just wanted to get home. After our short adventure, that turned into almost a whole day, who could blame him. I believe they have a great rodeo in Wabamun. It is unfortunate that after the 2005 oil spill the lake seemed to get somewhat of a bad reputation. I enjoyed going to camp there as a child.
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